Email + social media buttons = increased CTRs

GetResponse's "Email Marketing and Social Media Integration Report" found that the inclusion of social media sharing buttons in email generated click-through rates around 30% higher than email sent with no sharing options.

A Twitter button proved to be the most effective, increasing click-through rates by 40% but in order to garner the highest rates, around 55%, more than one social media button needed to be incorporated.

According to the Founder of GetResponse and CEO of Implix, Simon Grabowski, "The impressive 55% CTR increase achieved by adding social sharing options tells us it's not enough to integrate campaigns with social media networks - the power is in sharing. For example, Twitter users are posting 55 million tweets per day. And Facebook has over 400 million active users worldwide, each with about 130 "friends". Many of these millions of users are potential ambassadors of our customers' brands. Imagine the impact on campaign results if every recipient shared a message with 130 friends, and so on and so on!"

Here's the best part. Inserting social media sharing buttons into email costs nothing, so it's pure ROI.

So, it seems email is here to stay and social networks aren't proving a threat to the communications channel as some had previously feared. Some research even suggests social media and email is a perfect partnership.

Earlier this year, customer relationship marketing agency Merkle released data showing email and social networks work well together. Their survey of over 3,000 U.S. adults age 18+ found that time spent with personal, or social, email had not changed in the twelve months leading up to the time of the survey in the fall of 2009.

Instead, 71% of respondents still reported spending 20 minutes or more, each week, with email.

In fact, contrary to what some might believe, Merkle found that active social networkers check their email inboxes far more regularly than those who spend less time on social networks. Forty-two percent of social networkers check their email account four or more times a day, compared to just 27% of their non-networked counterparts.

"Social networks and email feed each other - it's the ultimate symbiotic relationship. But just knowing that isn't enough," writes Jeanne S. Jennings on the MarketingSherpa Blog. "You have to know how to do it correctly to make it work."

Tags: click-through rate, email marketing, email strategy, social media, social network